[unreadable] During the past three decades, the number of clinical investigators, particularly MDs, submitting grants to the NIH dropped from about 40% of applications in the 1970s to about 20% presently. The Clinical Research Enhancement Act authorized NIH to develop graduate training programs in clinical investigation. One such program was the K30 grant initiative that funds didactic training programs for MDs and other postgraduate level health professionals. The applicants were among the first group of 35 academic institutions to be funded under the K30 program, which is a Master's Degree in Biostatistics: Patient-Oriented Research Track in which postdoctoral fellows and junior faculty enrolled in a two-year, 30-credit program centered on courses in Biostatistics and Epidemiology that were part of the curriculum of the Mailman School of Public Health. However, the enrollees have to maintain nearly full-time commitments to their fellowship training or faculty responsibilities. There is, therefore, little or no opportunity to combine the didactic program with focused and mentored clinical research. The proposed K12 Clinical Research Scholars Program Award will provide exactly this type of critical support. Individuals will be funded for 2-3 years, with the goal being that they will apply for K23, K08 or R01 grants during the last year of our support. It is planned plan to link the K12 program closely to their existing K30-POR program, and they expect that the majority of the participants will be in the K30 program while they are funded by the K12 grant, or will have recently completed the K30 Master's program. In addition to the didactic component, the Scholars will receive intensive, mentored training in POR investigation. Proposed research must meet the definition of Patient-Oriented Research including direct contact between the investigator and the research subjects. They expect that the majority of the research will be conducted at the GCRC, although this will not be a requirement. Lead Mentors, chosen from Columbia's outstanding cadre of clinical investigators, will be central to the success of the program, as will the Advisory Committee. Mentors and Scholars will attend meetings of the Advisory Committee every four months, with presentations made to the Committee, and a written NIH-style progress report submitted, yearly. Importantly, they will distinguish ourselves from other types of training grants (T32 or individual NRSA's) by having a coherent program that combines continued didactic training, significant mentoring, and an ongoing evaluation. They believe firmly that this K12 CRS Program will have an immense impact on the future of patient-oriented research in the next decades. [unreadable] [unreadable] [unreadable]